Please help. Steer won't eat.

[Angus Cattle Girl]

I purchased a nice blue roan April steer at the Arizonal Nationals held in December. He weighed about 650 in late-January at our county weigh-in. He is under coolers and fans all day.

The feed he is on right now is Show Chow Finishing Touch. He gets about 6 pounds of this twice a day with about half a pound of soaked beet pulp. He rarely cleans it up. Most of the time he'll eat about half or 3/4 of it. I started out only giving him 3 pounds of hay in the evening but now I have started offering it to him free-choice at night, hoping to put on weight.

On July 28th, we weighed him again. He only weighed 925. I am planning to take him to state fair in mid-August. He needs to weigh a minimum of 1000.

I've talked to people about trying to get him to eat better. We've slow cooked whole corn all day and I've fed him about a pound mixed in with his feed. He cleaned most of it up at first but then he got bored. I've also tried sprinkling plain table salt over his feed but he only nibbled at it.

What else can I try?

Also, this calf has a terrible kicking problem. He'll fire at you when you're just standing by his front leg or right behind him. Today I started sacking him out like a horse, which seemed to help. He kicks his leg over the side bar of the chute so much that he ends up hurting his leg, not wanting to put any weight on it for a while. Does anybody know any other ways I can get him over this problem too?

Please help. Any help I can get would be so great. I'm just really starting to stress right now. Thanks.
Angus Girl

 

[K2011]

Maybe putting molasses on top of his feed will increase consumption?

 

[Avalon]

You may be trying to many different things all at one time. You should consider going back to a ration that he liked best. Then starting him on probios gel. Might also consider adding vitaferms progest 30. Either product has the proper enzymes to balance his stomach. IMO salt and or loose minerals need to be given seperatley as free choice. I wouold also consider cutting back on the beet pulp. Some calves just do not care for beet pulp. As far as the kicking. you might try dosing him with ace or thorazine while working with him. If he is nervous you might even try giving him melatonin on a daily basis. Both ace and thorazine are Rx only so you would need to check with your vet. Good luck

 

[Snider_Angus]

1. Tie him to a post
2. Get a broom handle.(long enough he doesnt connect with you when he kicks :lol: )
3. Stand behind him and just rub it between his legs and all around his hindquarters.
4. Put that stick right above the back of his toes(that little indention) and push! he will kick at you for a while but as soon as he puts his foot back on the ground make him kick again..
5. eventually he wont enjoy kicking anymore and think of it more as a pain to kick...

you sound like a horse person so i will give you an example.. Have you ever seen where they put a rope around the horses flank and cinch it up? then they make them trot in a circle and kick alot. That gets them to where they hate kicking cause it just takes too much energy and they learn that they dont really wanna do it anymore..


i hoped that kinda helped... sorry i couldnt be more help

 

[CPL]

Last Fall/Winter/into Spring my heifer wouldn't eat or wouldn't stay eating either. At first she was eating a couple pounds of a oats and corn mix. When we got the order in of show feed she ate just a little bit and decided she didn't like it. Well then she just went completely off of everything so we just filled the feeder up with hay. One thing I did find out was that she loved oats, and most the time I could get her to eat corn, etc. by soaking it in oats. Then its like she got bored of that. One thing that everyone keep telling me was to try milk replacer powder. It would have probably help her being just weaned, but I knew she'd have to go back in with mom in the spring so I really didn't want her to be getting milk or anything that tastes like it, but you might try it.

 

[VCC]

I have had to switch feeds on a steer until you find something they like. If you are trying to get the calf to grow I would cut out the beet pulp for a while it is more of a filler than a high energy feed. Try Sullivan's APPETITE EXPRESS™ Probiotic Granules (5 lb. bag) this helps there digestion and helps give them an appetite. Your steer weighs 925 at this time, it should be getting between 18.5 to 24 pounds of grain a day. Once you get it eating make sure you increase the feed slowly don't just add it all at once. Do you have any other animals with this calf, or at least penned near it. I it senses that it has competition for its feed it may eat more.

 

[Avalon]

So haw about an update on that steer that won't eat?

 

[lcm]

I agree with the post above that mentions using Progest 30---it is a fantastic daily probiotic. It wouldn't hurt to start the Progest 30 and do 3-4 days of Probios with it, to get him going in the right direction.
As hot as it has been in Texas this year, the feed is probably too hot (with the corn...). We've had very good luck with using PowerPhat. It is very palatable and they LOVE it. It works fast too, as you can really see that cover go on quickly. It usually gets one eating that wouldn't. Start slow and work up to a full ration in the feed.

 

[Angus Cattle Girl]

Ok. So I cut out the beet pulp all together. I also bought a bag of Ranchway Show Flake Finisher and he likes it a lot better than Show Chow. I also started to feed him three times a day, feeding him half of his regular ration at lunch. And I also gave him a hit of probios but it didn't seem to make a difference.

But he has seemed to eat better. BUT I'm almost afraid to weigh him. State fair starts the 20th. But if he doesn't make weight and sell there, I'm going to take him to the NILE show in Montana in October. I'd make more money than going to Denver or Arizona.

As for the kicking, I think he just needs to trust you. I messed with him with the show stick one day and he kicked the crap out of it. I gave him a day break for him to think on it. Came back the next day. Didn't kick at all. Just raised his foot!! :banana:

Thanks to everyone for the suggestions. We'll see if he hits the 1000 LB. mark.

 

[Avalon]

Sounds like progress. keep in mind the probiotics do not work overnight.

 

[Snider_Angus]

As for the kicking, I think he just needs to trust you. I messed with him with the show stick one day and he kicked the crap out of it. I gave him a day break for him to think on it. Came back the next day. Didn't kick at all. Just raised his foot!! :banana:

That is what we have do as soon as we can get them tied to the fence. But be carefull.. just because he didnt kick at you one time doesnt mean he is over it.. Try the same thing tommorow.

Your welcome,
Aaron